


Give Me A Minute and I'll Give You Forever

by ThereIsNoTragedyInThat



Series: What Once Was [2]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Boys In Love, Canon-Typical Violence, Concussions, Established Relationship, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Protective Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), Protective Merlin (Merlin), Short & Sweet, Whumptober
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-01
Updated: 2020-10-01
Packaged: 2021-03-08 03:08:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,244
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26748562
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThereIsNoTragedyInThat/pseuds/ThereIsNoTragedyInThat
Summary: As far as prisons went, this one was painfully unoriginal.
Relationships: Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)
Series: What Once Was [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1915285
Comments: 5
Kudos: 162
Collections: Whumptober 2020





	Give Me A Minute and I'll Give You Forever

**Author's Note:**

> Informally participating in Whumptober, won't be everyday, just when I have a minute. 
> 
> Prompt: Waking up restrained.

Merlin woke to the sensation of a sharp boot being shoved in his side and a familiar voice growling out obscenities. That in of itself wasn’t an entirely unusual way for him to meet the morning sun, or least it hadn’t used to be, before. What really forced him to groggily blink open his weary eyelids, was the tinge of desperation in that voice, in the voice of a man he loved like a new day.

There was a slam and it took Merlin all of five seconds to remember what had happened and how they’d ended up here. The room was small and cold, the stones beneath him bumpy and painful. Straw littered the space and the smell of death clung to the air as though it had always been there.

As far as prisons went this one was painfully unoriginal.

“Merlin.”

Looking at the wall directly across from him, he found Arthur, eyes bright with concern, even as his jaw remained clenched with barely contained rage. He tried to move, it was instinctual these days, to get closer, to always get closer. Part of him wondered if it was his magic doing it, the way it always seemed to surge to the surface under Arthur’s touch, the way it seemed to settle like a current beneath his skin once they did.

He didn’t make it very far. The sound of chain scraping against stone made them both wince and Merlin found himself staring down at the rusty shackles enveloping his wrist with exasperation. Honestly, they couldn’t even bother to clean them. Closer inspection turned out to be a bad idea, however, when he spotted the red stains that weren’t quite rust.

“Merlin please.”

Oh.

Right.

Arthur was leaning forward, the shackles holding him back from getting any closer and his expression was twisted into something worried and soft…something that was usually reserved for behind closed doors and forests where prying eyes wouldn’t dare look. Merlin couldn’t figure out what was wrong, sure the kick smarted, but he’d had far worse…

“Your head Merlin, are you alright?”

He reached up out of habit more than anything and was supremely unsurprised when his hand came back damp with his own blood. There were murky memories of being hit over the head, of voices, the knights yelling and the clanging of metal.

“I’ll be fine,” he decided, though he really had no proof of that. It didn’t matter, they both needed to focus their attention on escape and not a bump on his head. “Really.”

Arthur didn’t seem to believe him, eyes still weary but at very least he was resigned to their capture and apparent helplessness, so he slumped against the wall in defeat.

“We’re really stuck this time, Merlin.”

He sounded miserable and he got it really, as far as Arthur knew they were well and truly screwed. Merlin felt his magic shift inside him, sending a shiver down his spine and he was looking at his shackles again, glancing at Arthur and trying to figure out how not to draw attention to what he was doing.

“We shouldn’t have been caught there,” Arthur growled, hands curling into fists. “We checked the perimeter and we didn’t leave any traces…it doesn’t make any sense.”

Arthur would be blaming himself for awhile yet, going over all the possible ways things might have slipped his notice and Merlin ached to comfort him, to remind him that while he was a prince, he was still human.

Except, Merlin’s eye had caught on something else. Really, it was almost too bloody easy, and if they were this stupid it was a miracle, they caught them in the first place. Rotating his wrist and feeling the heaviness of Arthur’s gaze, he used his other had to start gently tugging on the shackle.

It scraped at his skin, the rust grinding against delicate flesh as he began to pull a bit harder only for it to get caught on his knuckles of all things. Grimacing, he’s squeezed his thumb, hoping he wouldn’t have to pop it out, when, with a grunt of discomfort, it slid right off his hand.

Looking up quickly, he met Arthur’s astonished eyes with his own wide smile.

That’s what they got for thinking he was practically dead; they hadn’t even bothered to fasten the shackles correctly. There was a startled laugh from Arthur and Merlin was moving quickly yanking at the shackle on his other wrist, heedless of the deep scratches on his skin, until finally that too fell to the stones with a clank.

Shifting onto his knees, Merlin moved to stand, one hand pressed firmly against the wall. That, as it turned out, was a terrible idea. His eyes went blurry, pain reverberating through his skull, leaving him unable to move for a long minute.

“Merlin? What is it? Talk to me.”

“I need a minute,” he managed to grit out. “Just give me a minute.”

Merlin willed the room to stop spinning as he once again, tried to stand. He used the wall as much as he could, fingers digging into the space between the stones, his shoulder heavy against it. Obviously, he had a concussion, but he didn’t have time to worry about it, not yet.

“Merlin,” Arthur’s voice was soft, coaxing, like he feared he were about to drop dead any minute. “You have to go. There might be keys somewhere, but you can leave and come back with backup-”

“Shut up.”

“Merlin-”

“Shut up.”

There wasn’t a chance in hell he’d leave Arthur here, or any of the knights…he just needed something as an alibi. Squinting harshly, a slow smile came to Merlin’s lips as he spotted the bucket that was thankfully not too far away.

Just in time too, as a loud, booming voice sounded from down the hallway and was getting decidedly closer. Taking two shaky steps, Merlin snatched up the bucket and retreated to the wall, right behind where the door would swing open.

“Don’t say a word,” he warned.

Arthur was glaring again but Merlin knew it was out frustration and his inability to help while chained to the wall. Squeezing his eyes shut so there would be no chance of Arthur spotting them glow, he raised his arms just as the door swung open.

A large pot-bellied man came ambling into the room and before he could get a word out, Merlin slammed the bucket over the man’s head. It wouldn’t have worked had he been a regular scrawny boy but wasn’t and never had been.

The man crashed to the floor without so much as a grunt and Merlin was left standing there with Arthur’s wide-eyed gaze on him. Offering a cocky grin, Merlin sank to his knees gratefully, and dug out the keys. He tossed them to Arthur, unwilling to move while the world righted itself again.

Next thing he knew, Arthur was there, strong hands clamping down on his arm and dragging him to his feet. He found himself staring into intense blue eyes and the spinning all but stopped as he just looked at him. Arthur smiled, “thanks Merlin, I’ve got it from here.”

An arm settled around his waist and Merlin let himself be guided out into the castle as they got to work freeing the knights. He didn’t need to worry about a thing with Arthur by his side, determined to take care of him. 


End file.
